Back In Grind

Fifteen years later, world of warcraft classic is still an epic adventure.

- Steven Messner

Returning to World of Warcraft’s original state is a humbling experience. With thousands of hours spent in Azeroth, I’ve defeated intergalactic demon armies and thwarted orc hordes from alternate timelines all while amassing the most powerful gear the universe has ever known. But Classic makes braving a cave filled with level 12 troggs feel like a massive achievement. It’s not so much a nostalgia trip as it is a nostalgia fall into a pit of rusty razor blades. And you know what? I kind of like it that way.

Classic is a full recreation of World of Warcraft as it was at launch, or not long after – a sort of digital time machine that lives alongside the modern version. It’s a gruelling and often frustrating experience, but it’s also helped me rediscover why I loved Warcraft in the first place. For better and worse, this is WOW exactly as I remember playing it well over a decade ago – before expansions, like 2010’s Cataclysm, streamlined entire game systems and forever changed Azeroth.

BETTER TOGETHER

Rose-tinted nostalgia can often be deceiving, but Classic proves that people are right to spend so much time fawning over that pivotal era of WoW’s early years.

Experienced today, Classic’s uncompromised vision feels endearing and rewarding, thanks largely to challenging combat that necessitates social cooperation and flavourful RPG systems that make each class feel distinct.

That’s a stark contrast to the latest expansion,